Sub Surf and triangles
Actually, Cole, they may not have to be triangles, only have to look like triangles. What I would do (I think), is to recast the triangles as quads where two of the vertices of the quad exactly co-incide, giving four vertices, and four edges, even though one of the edges has a length of zero.

Though not in this exact circumstance, this is a trick I have used in the past to good effect, though I've not tested it exhaustively, and it may not work, or may work with unanticipated side effects, in some cases.